Information Systems for Solving Wicked Urban Problems

The contemporary discourse of “smart cities” argues new urban information systems are needed that “exploit operational data … to optimize the operation of city services” through closed-loop control (Harrison et al. 2010). Drawing on the literature of urban modeling and using the city of Boston as an example, the longstanding challenges to urban optimization are described at each stage of the cybernetic control loop: goals, actuator, system, disturbances, and information feedback (Savas 1970; Wiener 1948). This approach is not well suited to “wicked” problems, which I defined as those that are poorly defined, involve many stakeholders, require complex solutions, involve trade-offs among values, and occur over long time horizons (Rittel and Webber 1973). Tackling these problems will require information systems that fall into three functional classes: public knowledge creation, deliberative analysis, and process support.

Quick, run a simulation of what would happen if a Category 4 Hurricane was on the way?

Where will growth occur?Where market wants (economist)Where zoning allows (lawyer)Where you can build housing types that conform to prevailing social norms of residents (Sociologist)All are correct. Cannot put all in the same model.

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Goal setting Who has the legitimacy to set goals? What if they disagree? Goal Stakeholders Source of Legitimacy Dilemmas Multiple levels ofElected Officials Democracy (elections) government Should there be limits?Experts Professional Which professions?Residents Personal Which residents?Committees, commissions, Member identities How should they beboards, etc. Group activities involved?

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Information FeedbackPractical• Dumb systems, lack of dataInstitutional• Systems in silos within and between governments (Ferreira and Evans 1995)Theoretical• Data we have like trace measures The City of Boston crime tracking system is may not measure what we want to not easily available to other departments, or the public. Image source: City of Boston know (Webb 2000)

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OK, opDmizaDon and real-­‐Dme control is hard but important for some things such as crisis response and urban service delivery. What it can achieve is fundamentally limited by legal, poliDcal, and pracDcal consideraDons. What informaDon systems do we need to tackle the really big problems?

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What is a ‘Wicked’ Problem? Rittel and Webber (1973) Poorly Defined Complex context Many stakeholders involved Solutions require design Decisions require weighing Long time horizons and analysis value trade-offsExamples:How should our city grow? How can we improve equity? How do we create jobs?

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Can they be tackled? Yes! Analytic-Deliberative-Design ProcessesSource: Faga 2006

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How to move forward?• Design science research methodology • “If the tool is all there is, the level of knowledge is that of a craft-based discipline” (Gregor and Jones 2007) • “scientific” approach to technology development • Kernel social science theories applied to guide problem solving technology• Information system development methods • Zachman framework